On Mike and Mike this morning, Herm Edwards and the guys threw around the topic if the Rams regret not drafting RG3. Mike Golic suggested that if Fisher and Snead answered that “in a private moment they would want RG3.” Chris Mortensen refuted that notion, saying he had talked to Fisher in a private moment and that he is high on Bradford.

So we went to Randy Karraker and asked him the exact same question. should the Rams have drafted RG3?

 

It really didn’t make sense for the Rams to take RGIII and jettison Sam Bradford before the draft in April, and it didn’t make sense on many fronts.

 

Before Jeff Fisher took the Rams job, he met with Bradford. Fisher solicited the advice of his friends around the league, watched tape, and concluded that Bradford was a franchise-quality quarterback. Why would he, three months after taking the job and before a practice, bail on the guy that he took the job in part because of?

 

Secondly, the franchise had a significant investment in Bradford…a six year, $78 million contract with $50 million guaranteed. Trading or cutting Bradford would have accelerated nearly $18 million into the Rams 2012 salary cap. With that money not available, they would not have been able to sign Chris Long and James Laurinaitis to extensions, and would have watched them walk away in free agency.

 

Third, the Redskins gave the Rams three number one picks and a number two for the second pick. If the Rams had Griffin, they would NOT have Michael Brockers, Janoris Jenkins, Isiah Pead or the upcoming first round picks from Washington in 2013 and 2014. If they would have selected Griffin and Brian Quick, they likely would not have been able to use choices on Chris Givens and Daryl Richardson…because they would not have had extra picks to fill needs at running back and cornerback in later rounds. If the Rams would have used picks according to the order they did in the draft, they would have taken a cornerback in the third, a running back in the fourth, another corner in the fifth, a wide reciever in the sixth, and then a guard and a kicker in the seventh. Jenkins wouldn’t have been there in the third, Pead wouldn’t have in the fourth, Trumaine Johnson wouldn’t have in the fifth, and Givens wouldn’t have in the sixth. Perhaps Rokevious Watkins and Greg Zuerlein would have been there in the seventh. That’s the impact that no trade with Washington would have had.

 

RGIII is great, and should have a great career. But the Rams needed to fix their roster. From their finale last year against San Francisco, the Rams started eight players that aren’t in the NFL this year, and had 26 on their roster that aren’t in the NFL. They’re MUCH better off having made that trade than not.